Professional Learning

Have an idea for a session that you'd like to see? Let us know about it by filling out the Faculty Needs Assessment Form!

Challenging Anti-Black Racism in the Virtual Environment Survey

Please complete this anonymous questionnaire to help assess your readiness to engage in anti-Black racism work.

The results from this questionnaire will be used by the Centre for Human Rights, Equity and Diversity to better understand the readiness of Humber staff to engage in anti-Black racism work, and to inform future education and training offerings.

Additional resources can be found on our Resources page under "Anti-Black Racism Training."

RESPONDUS: Converting a Word Document to a Blackboard Test

Looking for an easier way to load exams and quizzes into your Blackboard course site? Do you have a Word document with test questions that you want to use? Respondus is powerful third-party tool for preparing, managing, and uploading exams.

In this workshop we will show you how to:

• Download and install Respondus to your Windows computer

• Format test questions and answer keys in Word

• Import Word documents into Respondus

• Publish a test from Respondus to Blackboard

Short Webinar | How to Bring a Bb Collaborate Ultra Recording into Panopto

Taking your recorded sessions from Blackboard Collaborate Ultra and bringing them into Panopto is easy. This short Webinar will guide you through the process as well as review provisioning Panopto for Blackboard.

Introduction to Designing and Building your Online Course

Join us to go through the 10 steps to help bring your course to the online world.

• • Presentation Files

Deeper Dive: Blackboard Groups

This session will focus on the Groups feature in Blackboard. Participants will learn about the various ways to create groups, creating group sign-up sheets, group tools available to students, creating group assignments, and grading group assignment.

Getting the Most out of Panopto (Sharing, Quizzing, Blackboard)

A session about all things Panopto!

Caption your Videos in Minutes using Panopto

A step-by-step guide on how to add captions to your webinars, recorded classes or course videos. We’ll leverage Panopto to generate automated captions to your video in seconds and edit those captions effortlessly in minutes.

NEW Blackboard Ally: An Overview

Starting June 1, there's a NEW feature installed in your Blackboard course site – Blackboard Ally! In this session, we will tour this new tool and its features in our LMS system.

Blackboard Ally is an accessibility application that helps identify whether your digital course content is accessible and provides tips for remediation. As well, Ally can convert your LMS content into alternative formats, including PDFs, electronic braille and audio files.

Creating Accessible Word Documents

In this session, we will modify inaccessible content to comply with accessibility standards. As well, we will look at the following in Word with respect to accessibility: Accessibility Checker, Document Structure, and Tables. You will walk away with strategies to help you make your Word documents accessible.

Deeper Dive: Creating your ​Learning Modules in Blackboard

In this session, we will take a deeper dive into creating learning modules in Blackboard. We will review the Content Folder Method and the Learning Module Method for building module material. In the examples provided in the video below, we will pull apart these two modules and go into detail about how they were created and identify the features used in Blackboard to do so.

Video – Different Type of Modules Built in Blackboard

How to Easily Create Videos Using Panopto

In this session, we will cover the steps involved in creating videos using Panopto.

Deeper Dive: Blackboard Course Tools

In this session we will take a closer look at how to set up and use three communication tools in Blackboard:

• Discussion Boards: An interactive space where students can post and reply to messages. (Examples include class debates, weekly reflections, team discussions, role plays.)

• Journals: A private, reflective space for students to write. (Examples include reflecting on personal growth throughout the semester, recording lab results, documenting clinical experiences, communicating “muddiest points” that are private.)

• Wikis: A collaborative space where students can view, contribute, and edit content. (Examples include grant writing, creative writing,, group research projects, student created study guides, and course glossaries.)

Getting Familiar with Blackboard

Session Description

This workshop focuses on the basics of Blackboard including how to navigate, add learning content, use basic communication tools, create assignments, and apply the Humber Template to your course site.

• Blackboard Basics Quick Reference Card pdf

Deeper Dive: Putting your Rubrics into Blackboard

In this session we take a deep dive into the Blackboard Rubrics tool. We will look at adding different types of rubrics to Blackboard, attaching rubrics to assignments, using the rubric to grade student submissions and provide feedback, and viewing the rubric as the student sees it.

Prerequisites: This workshop focuses on the tool and not the theory of rubrics. To get the most out of this workshop, you may wish to review this past recording of the “Creating and Using Rubrics” webinar which focuses on designing effective rubrics.

Bridging from Course Design to Course Build

In this session, we will explore customized tools that support faculty through the course design and course build process. We will revisit Humber’s course design tool and overview Humber's brand new Blackboard template. We will also share tools and samples to help you make modules Blackboard-ready. Questions using the chat feature will be encouraged throughout.

Video – Different Type of Modules Built in Blackboard

Session Files

• Bridging From Course Design to Course Build (PDF)

• Module Example with Notes

• Course Content Builder Guide

Applying Accessibility Guidelines (AODA) to Online Content and Learning Materials

Creating and providing accessible documents is about inclusion, equity, and social responsibility. This webinar will review the WCAG accessibility guidelines and AODA requirements applicable to creating digital content and documents and the fundamentals of creating accessible materials. As well, you will walk away with strategies and a toolbox full of apps and resources to help with making your content accessible.

• • Presentation Files

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in an Online Environment

In this session, participants will learn how universal design for learning (UDL) can help remove barriers for students and foster an online learning environment that is engaging and accessible for all. Practical strategies will be shared and participants will be given the option to set a goal related to a course they are developing.

• Presentation Files

Choosing Technology to Support Teaching and Learning Online

This webinar will focus on thinking about choosing and using educational technology tools thoughtfully and how to select tools that align with our learning outcomes and assessments. We will explore the Edtech bank -a group of tools, organized by function, that we recommend. We will briefly talk about each tool and have time for questions about specific assessments and learning activities.

Assessment Approaches for Online Learning

This session will explore ideas for alternative forms of assessments that will engage students in authentic opportunities to demonstrate their learning. We will also learn about educational technology tools that can support the delivery and completion of these assessments.

Exploring Video Assignments

Are you interested in exploring video creation as an assignment for your students? Are you already exploring videos but are unsure where to send your students for tools, resources, and support?

The Idea Lab offers resources including online tutorials, instructional videos, and Blackboard packages for various types of video assignments. In addition, the Idea Lab team are here to support your students with workshops, online support, and one-on-one guidance and troubleshooting with digital assignments.

Ideas for a video assignment include a mock interview, a screencast of a software demonstration, a digital story, a sales pitch, a demonstration of newly acquired skill, and many more. This session will help you explore if there is an appropriate video assignment opportunity in your course.

• • Session Resources

Exploring Infographic Assignments

Are you interested in exploring Infographics as an assignment for your students? Are you already exploring infographics but are unsure where to send your students for tools, resources, and support?

The Idea Lab offers resources including online tutorials, instructional videos, and Blackboard packages for Infographic assignments. In addition, the Idea Lab team are here to support your students with workshops, online support, and one-on-one guidance and troubleshooting with digital assignments.

This session will help you explore if there is an appropriate infographic assignment opportunity in your course.

• • Infographic Resources

Designing Effective Discussion Boards

In this webinar we will demo how to create Discussion Boards in Blackboard, and discuss how to use Discussion Boards to assess learning, build community, engage learners, and deepen learning.

Lumen5: Submitting your Course Trailer (Step C)

So you've finished your course trailer? This webinar will take a deep dive into Step C within Step 7, of the 10 Step Course Build process. Within Lumen5, we'll guide you through how to "request review" and how to apply Captions to your video within Panopto, and how to complete the webform to submit your completed video!

Lumen5: Creating your Course Trailer (Steps A & B)

A step-by-step guide to Humber's newly acquired Course Trailer video builder. In this webinar, we'll summarize each of the steps which will help you in building your trailer. An overview of the writing process, and an introduction to using the tool.

Fill Up Your Accessibility Tank! - ALT Text and Colour Contrast Fixes in your Digital Course Content​

What do you do if you see that NEW Blackboard Ally red “oil gauge” next to your document in your course site? In this webinar we will demo how to fix accessibility issues identified by Blackboard Ally. This session will focus specifically on fixing issues with missing ALT text and color contrast in digital course content.